Wire-stretcher.



'l UNITED STATES Patented April 4, 1905; I l

CHARLES F. HOFELDT, OF LLOYD, MONTANA.A

WIRE-S'TRETCHER.

l SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 786,765, dated April4, 1905.

Application filed June 10., 1904. Serial No. 211,966.

To a/ZZ whom it may @andern/.-

Be it known that I. CHARLES F. HOFELDT, a citizen of the United States,and a resident of Lloyd, in the county of Chouteau and State of Montana`have invented anew andIm-l `features in the appended claims.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part ofthisspecioation, in which similar characters of reference indicatecorresponding parts in all the figures.

Figure 1 is a plan view of a wire-stretcher embodying my invention. Fig.2 is a section on the line 2 2 of Fig. 1, and Fig. 3 isa plan viewshowing the device as employed for stretching a length of wire betweenposts..

Referring to the drawings, 5 designates a frame, on the outer end ofwhich is acrossbar 6, having a handpiece 7 at one end and at the otherend a collar 8 for engaging around a stake-post 9, which may be driveninto the ground. The collar will be of such size as to move readily upand down on thestake-post. The frame 5 has a forward extension 10,provided with a clamping or jaw member 11, coacting with a jaw member 12on a lever 13, having link connections 14 with the said eX- tension 10.The jaw 12 is held in clamping' connection with the wire by means of alever 15, mounted to swing on the extension 10 and having a projection16 for engaging underneath the lever 13, as clearly indicated in Fig. 2.l

Extended outward in opposite directions from theframe 5 are arms 17 18,to which clamp-carrying levers 19 2O are pivoted. At the forward end ofeach lever is an upwardlyextended jaw member 21, coacting with jawmembers 22, mounted to swing on they levers. These jaws 22 are roundedat the end, and

they have rearwardly-extended lever portions jaws 22 will be caused toclamp the wire j tightly between said jaws and the jaws 21.

Operating in the frame 5 is a screw-shaft 25, which atits forward endhas a bearing 'in the front wall 26 of the frame, and at its other endit is connected to a crank-handle 27, which is provided with a stud orsleeve 28 on its inner side, and this stud or sleeve has a bearing inthe outer end wall of the frame.

Arranged to move along the screw is a crosshead 29, which of course hasa tapped opening in `which the screw operates, and from the outer endsofthe cross-head, which extend laterally of the frame, links 30 extendto pivotal connections with the outer ends of the clamp-carrying levers.h

In the operation when it is desired to splice Yor connect the ends of abroken wire between posts the clamping devices carried by theclamp-carrying levers are tightly engaged with'the Wires extended fromopposite posts,

and while the collar 8 is in connection with the stake 9 the screw-shaftis to be rotated in a direction to move the cross-head 29 towardthecross-bar 6. The links 3() will then force the outer' ends of thelevers 19 and 2() from each other, moving the jaw portions of the twolevers which are engaged with the wires toward each other, and thenafter lappingthe meeting ends of the wires the clamp comprising the jaws11 and l2 is to be engaged With these lapped ends, after which the endsmay Ihre twisted around the wires, as indicated in When the device isused for building a fence or 'stretching a continuons wire from one postto another, only one clamping device is to be employed, and the clampingend of the other clamp-carrying lever will be anchored to the next postfrom the one" to whichA the wire is to be immediately secured bystaples. For this purpose I show on the inner endof the lever 19 a ring31, from which achain 32 passes around the `post m. The device is to beop- IOO erated in the manner above described, excepting that the jaws 11and 12 are not to be engaged with the wire. The only jaws engaging withthe wire are those carried by the clamp-carrying levers adjacent to thepost through which the wire is to be secured. After securing the wire orwires to this post the device is to be carried and connected to the postnext to the post as and the wire orA wires secured to said post m. It isobvious that by means of the screw and the crank-handle 27 a greatstretching power may be had by a comparativelylittle manual exertion onthe part of the operator.

If on the first stretching the wire is not sufficiently tight, the wiremay be clamped in the middle clamp or with the clamp attached to thepost and the frame again opened and operated as before.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secureby Letters Patent- 1. A wire-stretcher comprising a frame, a centerclamp carried by the frame, clamp-carrying levers mounted to swing onopposite. sides of the frame, means for swinging the levers, and ananchoring' attachment on the in- 'ner end of one of the levers.

2. A wire-stretcher comprising a frame, means for anchoring the frame,clamp-earrying levers at opposite sides of the frame and having swingingrelation thereto, a screw for operating in the frame, a cross-headactuated by said screw, and link connections between said cross-head andthe clamp-carrying levers.

3. A wire-stretcher comprising a frame, a cross-bar on the frame, adevice carried by said cross-bar for engaging with a stake, armsextended outward from the frame, clamp-carrying levers mounted to swingon said arms, a screw for operating in the frame, a crosshead movable bysaid screw, and link connections between said cross-head and saidlevers.

4:. In a wire-stretching device, a frame, means 4for anchoring theframe, a screw-shaft for operating in the frame, a cross-head movablealong said screw-shaft, a clamp-earrying lever having swingingconnection with the frame, a link connection between the lever andcross-head, a jaw member on the forward end of said lever, a jaw membermounted to swing on the lever, the said swinging jaw member having aninclined lever portion, and a locking-lever mounted to swing on thelirstnamed lever for engaging' with the. inclined lever.

5. A wire-stretcher comprising a frame, a forward extension on saidframe having a jaw member, a jaw mounted to swing on said forwardextension, a locking-lever mounted to swing on the extension and havingengagement with the jaw-lever to hold it in clamping position, armsextended outward from the frame, clamp-earryinglevers mounted to swingon said arms, a screw-shaft for operating in the frame, a cross-headmoved by said screwshaft, `link connections between the crosshead andclamp-earrying levers, and means for anchoring the device.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specilication in thepresence of two subscribing witnesses.

CHARLES F. HOFELD'I.

Witnesses:

WELLINGTON S. TowNnn, HENRY RUSCH.

